Mistletoe  Part II
by Mali Bear's Buddy
Summary: Booth and Brennan are under the mistletoe again...only this time they're unaware they have an audience. Three-shot told from Hannah, Booth and Brennan's POVs. A little gift for all my Bones friends. Happy Holidays! Bonus 4th Chapter - Magic of Mistletoe.
1. Hannah

**A/N - Many, many thanks to the lovely jsq for agreeing to play beta again for this one. She's incredibly talented and a joy to work with. I couldn't have done this or the original _Mistletoe_ without her.**

**This will be another three-shot with Hannah, Booth and Brennan POVs. It'll be in that order. No changies or take-backs. I have a plan. I blame jsq for helping me to better focus my writing and actually put together a quasi-outline. Apparently, you **_**can**_** teach an old dog new tricks...*wink***

**Disclaimer - I don't own it. It isn't mine. If it was, Gemlily5 would be getting her Christmas episode and the results of the last 10 minutes of it might look something like this...**

Hannah

I shut my computer down. _Yet another mundane story put to bed. But it's worth it. He's worth it._ The hallways of the paper are dimly lit. Slipping into my coat I make my way toward the elevator with a cheerful smile at the receptionist. She's likely the only other person left here at this hour.

As my gloved finger pushes the button for the ground floor an idea hits: I'll round up Temperance and invite her to have a holiday drink with us. I know Seeley's been worried about her lately. While I don't fully understand his relationship with his partner, I love the man. I love him and I want him to be happy.

At first, I was a little jealous. _Okay, so maybe I was more than a little jealous. _ She gets to be with him when I can't. On a daily basis she gets to have adventures with him. _Don't get me wrong, I don't miss getting shot at. What I miss is the thrill. The bloodlust and excitement of the kind of story you just don't get in DC._

Domesticity really isn't my thing. I'm not good at being tied down. I hadn't thought I would want to be until I met Seeley. He's warm and compassionate. When I'm with him I see the kind of person I want to be. I guess that's why I'm here now - reaching out to comfort his best friend.

I get out of the taxi in front of the museum. Paying the driver, I tell him to have a happy holiday before proceeding into the Jeffersonian. I've been around enough that they know me and the guard at the desk waves me in.

The lab is dark. All of the scientists - the squints as Seeley calls them - have gone home for the evening. I see that the light is on in her office. I smile. _He's right. This is her home away from home. _ I make my way over to her door and I'm just about to call out to her when I see it. My boyfriend, the man that I love, standing under the mistletoe with his partner.

His hand rests on her upper arm and his head is cocked slightly to one side. I can't see his face, but from my vantage point I can see hers. It's tear-stained and her eyes flutter closed as he tenderly brushes new tears away.

I stay back and just watch them. Frozen there in the hallway. It's like watching a train wreck or a car accident. You know you should look away. Avoid watching the carnage with your own eyes. But you can't. _I can't._ Watching the death of a relationship is bad to begin with. As the scene unfolds before me, I see what I've been avoiding the last few months.

They lean into each other. From where I stand it's hard to tell who started it. It's a slow-motion kiss. The kind at the end of sappy movies. I've always been more of an action girl myself, but this is mesmerizing. It's soft. Pure.

I feel like an intruder to a private moment. It hits me that things between us have never been as intimate as that single chaste kiss between them. I should be angry. I have every right to be. But the emotion that washes over me isn't what you would expect.

I turn to go before I get caught. He's never going to love me the way he loves her. No matter how badly I want him to. Instead of weighing the facts, I let my heart make the decision. I stayed with him trying to resurrect what we had in the desert. If I hurry, I can probably be gone before he gets home.

I'm a reporter. I should have known better. Little things just didn't add up. The advice about the phone. Her warnings about being sure and staying safe. She was protecting him. The inflection in her voice should have told me everything I needed to know. Temperance Brennan was - _is_ - very much in love with Seeley Booth. They're both just too stupid to realize it. Well, I won't be second string. Seeing what I saw tonight I know that second best could never be good enough.

"Did you find them?" the guard asks.

I smile fiercely as I try to keep the tears from falling. "Looked like they were busy, so I..." I look around trying to make my escape. "I'm just gonna go."

"Have a good night!" I hear him call after me as I walk away.

I hail a cab blinded by the now free-falling tears. I pull out my phone and start making calls. I dial my editor and explain that DC isn't working out. I request a transfer and am delighted to find my position in Afghanistan was never filled. The paper agrees to have a ticket waiting for me at the airport.

Getting to the apartment is a blur. In my head I've already mapped the quickest route to getting all of my things packed. That's the thing about nomadic living. Traveling light means you are able to quickly abandon relationship sinkholes. Move on. Go back to the things you are good at.

Zipping the last of my bags, I pull a sheet of paper from one of my notepads. I brush away a tear as I write him a note. With shaky fingers I take his key from my ring and drop it with a gentle plink onto the ancient formica of the countertop.

As I am walking out the door for the last time, I notice them. Pictures on the bookcase. Seeley with all the squints. Temperance with Parker. Seeley and Temperance in formal wear. Each more intimate than the last. Each with a glimpse of something I should have seen all along - my position here was transient. I was never meant to stay.

I flick off the light as I make my exit. I think fondly on the man I shared the last few months of my life with. I wish him only good things - but especially that he is able to discover that they find their way to each other. He deserves that much. And Temperance Brennan is a fool if she lets him get away.

_Good bye, Seeley. Hello, world._


	2. Booth

**A/N - First and foremost - a BIG thank-you to jsq for her beta talents. Check out _The People in the Story. _She's made me laugh, cry and smile with chapters 5, 6, and 7 this week!**

**Secondly, damn...and thank you! I was floored by your response to the last one. I wasn't expecting that kind of reaction to a chapter from the POV of she-who-shall-remain nameless.**

**Disclaimer - Not mine. Though it seems that a few of you would like to give HH access to my MacBook. *grins***

Booth

"I don't know why anyone would do something like that," she says to me as we walk through the darkened lab.

My hands are jammed into my pants pockets holding the tails of my trench coat back. Tonight the shift in our relationship is apparent. I realize that my hand has not rested on her back, guiding and steadying her, since we returned to DC. _Things aren't the same now that Hannah's in the picture. But then they aren't supposed to be. I've moved on. _"People in love do crazy things," I say.

We're so deep in thought we don't notice until we're standing right underneath it. Mistletoe. Reaching up, she pulls down the slip of paper that dangles from the plant.

"Caroline?" I ask.

She shakes her head. "Angela." Her eyes are on the floor.

I see tears start running down her cheeks. It's a little bit of a shock. I mean Bones crying? It's rare and usually not so out of the blue. Something's different. She's different.

I touch her arm and tilt my head to look at her. "Kissing you in front of Caroline was torture," I muse thinking about the kiss we shared three years ago in this very spot. Trying to lighten the moment, I add, "And then you had to go and say it was like kissing your brother."

"I lied," she says, suddenly looking up at me.

"Oh, I know," I tease with a smile. Her eyes flutter closed as I brush her tears away.

We lean into each other. My lips slide over hers in the lightest of touches. Unlike our last mistletoe kiss, this one is about comfort rather than a puckish prosecutor. For a brief flicker, the world stops. I almost forget about...

_Oh. Shit. Hannah._ I'm not the kind of man who cheats. I watched my dad screw around on my mom while he was beating the hell out of us. Pops taught me better. He would beat the hell out of me if he knew I was doing this. To either of them. But especially to Bones. I pull back.

"I'm sorry, Booth," she says quietly. She's unable to look at me. Which is okay because at this point I'm not sure I could look at her either. I feel like a complete heel. "That shouldn't have happened. It was my fault. I shouldn't have..."

"You weren't alone in this, Bones," I say as I drag my hand over my face. _What am I going to do?_

She puts her hand on my arm. "Do you think it would help if I talked to her? If I explained?"

_I've got a few decisions to make. Letting her talk to my girlfriend isn't one of them._ "No. It's okay. All right? I'll take care of it."

Her face falls further. There is a sadness in her eyes that I realize has been there too often recently. "I know you want to make it work, Booth," she tells me, her eyes brimming with fresh tears. "I'll go to Cullen. I'll ask for a new agent to be assigned to the Jeffersonian."

"You don't mean that," I reply, reaching out to catch her hand.

She pulls it away as if the touch burns her. "I'm afraid it's what's best. For you, Booth." Without another word, she picks up her purse and hurries from the lab leaving me standing in her office too shocked to follow.

* * *

For a while, I just drive. There's something about being behind the wheel that helps me think. That and it's not like I can go home. I can't face Hannah. Not yet.

I pass Wong Fu's and think about stopping for a drink with Sid. Only I really don't feel like being around someone I know. Going to Wong Fu's or Founding Fathers - even the diner - is out of the question tonight.

Then I see it. The flashing light of the old pool hall. My fingers twitch. I haven't gambled in years. _Not like that anyway_. I resist the urge to pull over. To lose myself in a game of skill rather than chance. A game that I might actually win.

It's a struggle. But the part that makes me feel bad isn't what you'd expect. You see, I _know_ I'm not going in. That I'm not going to give into the temptation. Brennan changed me without knowing it. She made me want to be a better man. She _made_ me a better man. Hannah doesn't know that. She doesn't know about my past - my gambling problem or what really happened between me and Bones. That's the part that is tugging at me: I love two different women for two very different reasons.

I love Bones for our history. For everything we've meant to each other. Part of me always will. _But am I still _in_ love with her?_

And Hannah. Hannah makes me feel alive. When we were in the desert, she made me forget. I tried - really tried - to make it clear to Bones that I'd moved on hoping to get back to where things had been. I tried to love Hannah. But there's a problem with that. _I don't know if I'm _in _love with Hannah. It's more that I love her because she isn't Bones. And Hannah?_ _Hannah's in love with a stranger. _

I realize that if I want to have any hope of making it work I'm going to have to come clean. And I'm going to have to come clean about more than just the kiss. Right now the guilt is eating at me. And this isn't the kind of thing that going to confession and talking to Father Tom would help me deal with. _Oh, God. I've made a huge mess._

I walk up to my apartment and take my time letting myself in. It's late. In the event that she's asleep I don't want to wake her. I'll sleep on the couch tonight to avoid having this discussion. To give myself a little more time to think of how I'm going to right my wrongs.

The lights are on. I see a tube of lipstick on the bathroom floor. _That's odd_. Moving to the bedroom, I note that the bottom drawer of the dresser is open and there are hangers on the bed. _Was she called away on assignment?_

I make my way to the kitchen and reach into the refrigerator for a beer. That's when I see it. The note with the brass key sitting in the middle of it.

_Seeley -_

_I think it's time we stop fooling ourselves into thinking this is going to work out. I saw something tonight. Something that should have made me angry, but instead left me feeling surprisingly hopeful._

_I went by the Jeffersonian. I know you've been worried about Temperance and thought I'd invite her to join us for drinks. That's when I saw you. Kissing her in her office. _

_It should have bothered me. I mean, what woman wouldn't get upset at seeing her boyfriend kissing his partner? But I couldn't help but wonder if I had inadvertently gotten in the middle of something that was destined to happen. _

_I always wondered if there was something going on between you. The way you talked about her, the way your eyes followed her, I probably should have picked up on it sooner. But a woman in love tends to overlook certain things when it comes to the man in her life and that's what I did._

_I'm going back to Afghanistan. I suggest you go to her. Do whatever you have to do to make it work, and don't let her tell you 'no'. Any woman stupid enough not to want you doesn't know what she's missing. She's smart. She'll figure it out._

_Best wishes and good luck. Thanks for the memories._

_Hannah_

I skim it over a second time. _Could I really have been so blind?_

My phone vibrates and I pull it from my pocket to see a text. It's from Bones.

_I accepted a position on a dig in Peru. Will be gone for 2 weeks._

I take a deep breath. I've hurt them both and I hate myself for it. Shoving the note and the phone into my pockets, I toss my keys in the air and break for the door. _If I hurry, maybe I can still catch her._


	3. Brennan

**A/N - A warm hug and a big THANK-YOU to jsq. She's pushed me to be a better writer and handed me the Elmer's Glue when I needed to put things back together. I'm lucky she didn't throw up her hands and walk away when I changed the plan and the ending on her. She's amazing. Find out for yourself using the convenient link from the Favorite Author page on my profile.**

**Disclaimer - I don't own _Bones_.**

Brennan

"I don't know why anyone would do something like that," I remark as we walk into the lab. I want to ask how they stopped being in love. _He's the heart person. Surely he'll have some sort of explanation. _Maybe I can use it to learn to fall out of love with him.

"People in love do crazy things," he says. His hands are crammed in his pockets. He doesn't touch me like he used to. I almost tripped the other day, and he didn't even notice.

We don't see the plant hanging in my office until we're standing right underneath it. I pull the little slip of paper that floats in my face down and cram it in my pocket before Booth can see it. _Hope you and Booth can get into the spirit of Christmas._ Suddenly I find myself wanting to murder my best friend. Booth is in a relationship, and she does this? I know she means well, that she's trying to help me. Only she isn't.

"Caroline again?" he asks.

"Angela," I breathe, pushing my bangs out of my eyes as I find myself counting tiles on the floor. I feel the moisture welling beneath my lids and squeeze my eyes shut. _I don't want him to see me cry. If he holds me, touches me the way he used to, I'll break. I'll tell him everything I've been holding back._

His fingers run up the line of my arm and I have to fight not to shiver in response. His head cocks sideways to look at me. "Kissing you in front of Caroline was torture," he says slowly, his tone wistful. I can almost hear him smile without seeing his face. "And then you had to go and say it was like kissing your brother."

"I lied," looking up at him, I quickly admit the truth.

"Oh, I know," he tells me with a smile. My eyes close as he raises a hand to my cheek to wipe my tears away.

His lips touch mine lightly. Unlike our last kiss, this one is about comfort rather than desperation. Only I _am_ desperate. Desperate to take back that night outside the Hoover. To take back Maluku and ensure Hannah had never entered into his life. _Hannah..._

He pulls back. He pulls back and I feel...empty. He's barely touched me, yet I feel the loss immediately. He exhales.

"I'm sorry, Booth," I whisper. I can't meet his eyes. _How could I do this to him? Maybe I was right, maybe he _does_ need to be protected from me._ "That shouldn't have happened. It was my fault. I shouldn't have..."

"You weren't alone in this, Bones," he says as he drags a hand over his face and scrubs at the light stubble on his chin.

I reach out and touch his sleeve, wanting to offer him comfort even as I feel my heart squeeze painfully in my chest. "Do you think it would help if I talked to her? If I explained?" _Not that I want to do it. But I would. For him._

"No. It's okay. All right?" he sighs as our eyes meet. "I'll take care of it."

"I know you want to make it work, Booth." I know how badly he needs this - Hannah, being happy, all of it. As much as I want him in my life, I know I can't get in the way of that. "I'll go to Cullen. I'll ask for a new agent to be assigned to the Jeffersonian."

"You don't mean that," he replies, grabbing my hand.

I yank it away unable to face what I feel is the end of our partnership - worse, what's left of our friendship. "I'm afraid it's what's best. For you, Booth."

His chin drops, and his hands come to his hips. As he considers further protest, I seize the opportunity and hurry past him to get out of the lab.

* * *

In the parking garage, I sit in the Prius with my head back against the headrest. I know the tears are falling. I can feel them, hot and wet, on my face. Yet I am still trying to convince myself that by holding my head in this position I can prevent them from sliding over my cheeks. Taking a deep breath, I put the car into drive and pull out of the employee lot, eager to get away from what could have been my life. Away from the man I promised myself I'd stop running from.

My cell phone starts to ring. I glance at the screen before answering, half expecting it to be Booth. "Dr. Brennan speaking," I say to the person on the other end of the unfamiliar number. _I'm offered a dig. Peru. They want me to leave tonight. _"I'll have to get back to you. There are a few details I'd need to work out."

I'm taken aback when I realize I'm sitting on the curb outside of Cam's house. That I drove here without realizing it surprises me greatly, but it suits my purposes and saves me a phone call. Walking onto the porch, I ring the bell.

My boss answers the door in a cocktail dress and heels. She smiles at me. "Dr. Brennan, I wasn't expecting you."

She motions me in and I step out of the cold. "It appears you are going out, so I'll be brief."

She tilts her head toward the living room and I follow her to the couch. "What brings you here tonight?"

I take a deep breath. "Dr. Saroyan," I begin, hoping that the tremor in my voice is only touching my own ears.

Cam takes a seat on the sofa and crosses her feet at the ankles in her usual lady-like fashion. "Dr. Brennan, Temperance, is everything okay?"

I flinch at the use of my given name. Every time anyone says it, I hear Hannah's voice. It's worse now because of the kiss. I want him to have everything he wants, and he's obviously decided that it's not me. _At least not anymore._ "I need to get away. Far away from here," the words leave my mouth hurriedly. "I had not previously requested time off because of the case and Angela and..."

To her credit, my boss nods. "Take as much time as you need."

"But I just got back," I say softly.

Her lips press together and I can tell that she's thinking. "And we'll deal with it. You need to do this for you."

"Are you sure?" I ask, my brow furrowing.

She laughs. "Yes, Dr. Brennan. Go. Everything will be fine. It's not like you'll be gone for a year. You'll recharge your batteries and hopefully things will get back to normal."

As we walk to the door, she pauses with her hand on the knob. "For what it's worth, we all think Booth's behaving like a jackass," she says.

"I..." _What's between us is ours,_ I think as I realize that I am about to tell at least part of the story. "It's not Booth's fault."

"We're your friends, too," she tells me as I'm walking out her door.

"Thank you," I say quickly before hurrying down the walkway to my car.

* * *

Getting beck to my condo is relatively uneventful. Except for the light snow that's beginning to fall. There's something cleansing about a snowfall, even when it's just flurries. The scene is washed white and made new. After tonight's events, I need new. I need to escape. As pretty as it is, hopefully it will hold off long enough for me to catch my flight.

I pack a suitcase. Usually I do so in a structured fashion - clothing, undergarments, toiletries, boots, tools - carefully arranging to maximize the amount of space in which I have to pack. Not tonight though. Tonight is about getting it done and getting out of here. Getting away from the desires that tonight made me realize I'm never going to fulfill. _Perhaps being away from here - away from him - I'll be able to do what he's done. Move on._

I call a cab company. I'd rather not leave my car in long term parking. It'll be safer here at my building. They promise a driver will be here in 30 minutes.

Taking a deep breath, I make a call I know will be difficult. "Hey, Ange," I say when she answers the phone.

"What's up, Sweetie?" she asks casually.

"I'm leaving," I tell her plainly.

She gasps. "What? Bren, why?"

I tell her about the mistletoe and Booth. I tell her about my heartache over what happened outside of the Hoover in March. I tell her that I figured it out, that I love him, but that he's moved on with Hannah. I tell her everything.

We cry together for a few minutes. She apologizes for her role in my upset. Surprisingly, however, she does not attempt to keep me from going.

As we are about to hang up the phone, she says something that stops my heart. "You have to tell him, Sweetie. If nothing else, he's still your partner."

Deep down, I know she's right. So, I do it. I send a text.

_I accepted a position on a dig in Peru. Will be gone for 2 weeks._

And then I head down to the lobby to wait.

**_To be continued..._**

**A/N - Yes, I did it. Again. This just became a 4-shot. Call it a Christmas Bonus!**


	4. The Magic of Mistletoe

**A/N - I'm sorry to see this one end. If this story isn't my personal favorite, it's definitely at the top of the list of the things I've written so far.**

**To jsq - You're definitely at the top of Santa's "Nice" list for putting up with me throughout this project. I couldn't have done this - Part I or II - without you. You're an amazing writer, beta and friend. I look forward to the unveiling of your newest project. **

**To all my Twitter buddies - Wow. Have I mentioned that meeting you ladies has been one of the highlights of my year? Thanks for the smiles, laughs and advice.**

**Disclaimer - I own the first five seasons of **_**Bones**_** on DVD. I don't, however, own anything you recognize.**

The Magic of Mistletoe

"Going away for the holidays?" the doorman asks as I wheel my suitcase out of the elevator.

I make a vain attempt to return his smile. "Yes," I reply. "Peru."

"Pardon me for saying, Dr. Brennan, but shouldn't a nice lady like you be spending Christmas with her family?"

Sighing, I brush the tear that escapes my eye away with the back of my hand. Max is in North Carolina with Russ and his family. I didn't go with him because of the case. Booth has Hannah. Cam has Michelle. Hodgins and Angela are preparing for the arrival of their baby. Me? I'm alone. And for some reason, though it hasn't before, that bothers me. I smile weakly. "I guess they forgot," I say, suddenly feeling like I'm in foster care all over again.

His face becomes pink and he looks away. From what Booth and Sweets have taught me, I deduce that he's embarrassed that he's asked the question. Rather than continuing with that topic, I change the subject. "I'll be gone for two weeks. I'll ask my father to come by for the mail. He has a key."

He nods at me, but is otherwise quiet.

"Have a nice holiday," I tell him as I walk away.

Outside, there is a feathery coating of snow covering the grass and bushes. The precipitation is not yet sticking to the street or the sidewalk, which bodes well for my flight plans. There is a childlike part of me that's sad to be missing a rare white Christmas, but the adult part of me knows that leaving is what's best of everyone.

I glance at the watch on my wrist. The cab is late. I'm shuffling through my purse for my cell phone to call the dispatch when it pulls into the parking lot. He parks at the curb and gets out to help me with my suitcase. Annoyed at his tardiness, I curtly give him my terminal information.

I climb into the back seat and crack a window as the stench of his body odor makes my eyes water. I lean back and wait for him to get in the car. He's taking his time. I'm getting more annoyed and making note to write the cab company a letter.

He slams the door on his entry and yanks the shifter on the steering column into drive. The cab lurches forward. A sigh of relief escapes me. Then I hear it.

"Bones!"

_But it can't be. He's with Hannah._ Still, I turn around. I turn, and I see him standing in the glow of the SUV's headlights as he runs toward the cab. Snow swirls around him.

"Stop the car," I demand.

"Lady, you've already complained about me running late and now you want me to stop?" he says, looking at me in the rearview mirror.

"Yes!" I yell, only to be jerked back against the seat when he slams on the brakes with a scowl. I open the door and step out of the car. "Booth?"

* * *

I pull into the lot just in time to see the cab begin to slide away from the curb. I throw the SUV into park and run after the cab calling out her name.

It's like that night outside the bar all over again. She got in the cab and rode away. We weren't ready that night. _Hell, we aren't ready now_. But I have to try for a different outcome. I have to make the attempt, even if it means that I remain broken for the rest of my life.

This time, I see brake lights. The cab stops. She steps out. My heart stops. Squeezing my eyes shut, I give a quick prayer of thanks.

"Booth?" she says as she approaches. Her movements are cautious. Her head tilts to one side and confusion blankets her face. "What are you doing here? Hannah..."

I shake my head and reach out to touch her scarf. I recognize it from the airport. The worn flannel is nowhere near as soft as her skin. "Hannah's gone. We aren't together anymore."

"But," she begins.

I want to touch her face, to rub away the worry lines. I settle for taking her hand. Looking at her now, it feels like I am seeing her - _really_ seeing her - for the first time in months. "She saw us tonight," I confess. She stiffens and tries to pull back.

"I'm sorry, Booth," she says quietly. Her blue eyes shift down to look at the pavement.

"I'm not." I force her chin up, searching her eyes as I make my next statement. "She saw what I've been hiding from."

"Lady, are you coming or not?" her cab driver bellows, interrupting our moment.

"Hey, pal, can you just give us a minute?" I ask, trying to keep a smile on my face not for him, but for the woman in front of me.

I hear him mumble something about the meter running as my eyes fall back on my partner's face. "I really should go," she whispers, her voice raw with emotion.

"Stay," I say, unable to keep the emotion from my own voice.

Her eyes shine with the moisture of unshed tears. "I have a plane to..."

I pull her closer and look at the snowflakes that rest in her hair. She shivers. "Stay," I whisper as my lips ghost over her temple. My eyes meet hers and hold. "Spend Christmas here. With me."

"Booth," she sighs. Her eyes remain sad, unsure.

"Do it because you're my best friend and I've missed you," I say quickly. _What if this is it? What if _this_ is _our_ moment? Could I really let her walk away?_ "There was something you wanted to tell me when we got back, only I never gave you the chance," I say to her. "I think that's why you're running away."

She shakes her head. "It doesn't matter. It really isn't important, Booth."

I cup her cheek. "Everything you say is important to me." _I know as soon as the words leave my mouth that they're a mistake. _My doubts are confirmed when she rolls her eyes. "I'm been a real ass hole, okay? I know that. I haven't done right by you. I want a chance, Bones. I want to make it up to you."

"What if it's too late?" she asks. Her voice drips with uncertainty. She's scared and she has every right to be.

Not knowing what else to do, I lean in. My lips touch hers softly. It's not too far off from the kiss we shared a few hours ago, only it's different. It's different because this kiss holds a promise. A promise of everything I want to give her. Of everything we could be. I lean my forehead against hers. "Baby, it could never be too late. Not for us."

The cabbie clears his throat.

"Whatdoya say, Bones?" I ask, the hope and love floating back to the surface.

* * *

I stand there, looking at Booth, unable to find the words. "This probably isn't a good idea," I say as my eyes flick to the cab.

I watch as his eyes close and he looks down at his shoes. I pull my hand out of his grip and turn to head for the cab. He grabs my arm. Part of me wants to put him on his back on the pavement. _He knows better._

"No," he says.

Stupidly, I furrow my brow and offer a childish response. "What do you mean 'no'?"

"Dammit, I'm doing what I should have done 10 months ago," he tells me. With a fire born of something other than his usual tenderness, he pulls me into his arms. "Stop fighting it," he says, "Stop running away."

I push against his chest. My resolve weakens at the lingering scent of his soap and aftershave. "Booth," I say, my tone coming in a plea rather than the warning I intended.

"Tell me, Temperance," he says. His eyes bore into mine. It's almost as if he's looking into my very core. "Look me in the eyes and tell me you don't love me. That you don't want me."

I blink back tears and gulp for air. I struggle in his arms, but he doesn't release me. "I can't," I finally sob, even as I continue to push against him.

His lips brush over my cheeks and eyelids as I finally still. "I love you. I should have said it the first time," he says as softly as the snow falling around us. "If it takes the next 30 years, I swear I'll prove it to you." His lips touch mine in the barest of kisses.

He leaves me standing in place as he walks over and pulls out his wallet. He pays the cab driver and collects my suitcase. Coming back to me, he takes my hand. "We both need time to make adjustments," he says as we head to the door. Looking at me sideways, he adds, "We'll take it slow. Baby steps, you know?"

I nod. _Even I know what that means._

"I want to get our friendship back first," he says, his hand resting on my back as he guides me to the SUV. "One of these days, I'm going to take you on your last first date."

_This is the Booth I know and love. Cocky and confident._ "And for now?" I ask him as he puts my bag in the back seat before climbing into the driver's seat.

"For now, we'll stop off and get Thai," he says, taking my hand. "We'll go back to my place and watch _It's a Wonderful Life_."

His touch is warm and I revel in the sensation caused by the calluses on his hands as he strokes his fingers over my palm. He chuckles and looks over at me, the corner of his mouth curling upwards. "What?" I ask, returning his smile.

"Mistletoe," he says with a shake of his head.

"Mistletoe," I repeat.

"Be prepared, Bones," he chuckles. "Next year, I'm hanging it everywhere."


End file.
